Industrial Film and Video

While less popular than theatrical films, sponsored films provide valuable insights for researchers interested in technology, innovation, and industry. These films are commissioned by companies for specific use within the organization, focusing on content rather than artistic expression. Industrial and corporate films fall under this category. Industrial videos highlight production, processing, or proprietary technology in a particular industry, while corporate videos are non-advertisement videos commissioned by businesses or organizations. In addition to preserving visual aspects of technology and industry, these films reveal much about the commissioning organization. The sponsor controls the film's message, setting, and tone, offering insight into how the organization perceives itself and wants to be perceived. 

In addition to the films, Hagley Library preserves materials documenting their production, including the valuable Cinecraft collection, as one of the leading production companies in the mid-twentieth century.  

FILMS AND FILM COLLECTIONS

Our curated Sponsored and industrial motion picture film collection at Hagley is an artificial compilation consisting of single motion picture films or small sets acquired through purchase or donation.  

The Masonite Corporation was a construction and interior design company established in 1925 by William H. Mason (1877-1940) as the Mason Fibre Co. The company's public relations film "Threshold of Tomorrow" is about its advanced production of wood products that are "wood better than wood." 

Remington Arms Company is one of the oldest American manufacturers of firearms and ammunition and the largest producer of shotguns and rifles in the United States."Exhibition Target Shooting" is a short film about target shooting showcasing expert marksmen's demonstration.   

The Johns Manville Corporation is an American insulation manufacturer. This rare post-war industrial film from Johns-Manville, Luther Reed Productions, "The Story of Modern Home Comfort," discusses the importance of insulating your home.    

International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) rose to prominence in electronic data processing by the mid-1950s, following significant success in the punch-card tabulating machine industry during the 1930s. “Link to the Future” is a sales film for IBM that focuses on the history of information technology. 

The Midvale Steel Company manufactured steel parts and was known for casting, forging, and machining high-quality steels, including alloy steels and precision steel products for various industries. This small collection consists of five reels of film that document operations at the Midvale Steel Plant in the Nicetown section of Philadelphia around 1919.  

The Lamson & Sessions Company was a leading manufacturer of bolts, nuts, and other fasteners in the 20th century. This collection comprises nineteen films dating from the 1940s to 1973, documenting employees working in Lamson & Sessions factories. Some of these films depict women employees in the workplace, while several others show machines and presses in action, creating bolts or nuts. 

During the twentieth century, the Wolf Envelope Company manufactured envelopes, stationery, and novelties in Cleveland, Ohio. This silent film documents the daily operations at the Wolf Envelope Company's facilities in 1935. Also included are a few short clips showing the manufacturing processes employed by other envelope industry companies, including the Berkowitz Envelope Company in Kansas City, Missouri, a paper mill in Berlin, New Hampshire, and John Dickison & Company in Washington, Tyne and Wear, England.   

The American Iron and Steel Institute is a trade association representing North American steel producers. It advocates for public policy, education, and innovation in the iron and steel industry. The institute's collection consists of nineteen films showcasing the versatility of steel in construction, engineering, and production processes. 

The American Motors Corporation was formed in 1954 through the merger of Nash-Kelvinator Corporation and Hudson Motor Car Company. This collection comprises six sales training videos for the American Motors Corporation. 

STORYCRAFT

Frank Siedel (1914-1988) was a writer, educator, and broadcaster. In 1947, he founded Storycraft, Inc., a production company specializing in sponsored films. The Frank Siedel papers document his work. 

CINECRAFT

Cinecraft, Inc. is a corporate film and video production company. The company was founded in 1939 by Ray Culley (1904-1983) and Betty Culley (1914-2016) in Cleveland, Ohio. Ray Culley served as the company's president until his retirement in 1970. During his tenure, Cinecraft specialized in producing commercials for businesses, industries, trade organizations, and, in some cases, government agencies and social service organizations. The Culley family collection of Cinecraft Productions audiovisual materials contains company and personnel history, films, and educational materials collected from 1937 to 2016.   

The Cinecraft, Inc. film collection consists of films produced or acquired by Cinecraft, scripts prepared for film productions, and administrative documents related to the company's daily functions.     

Robert "Bob" A. Schneider (1943-) worked as a sound engineer, then a writer, producer, and director at Cinecraft Productions, a film and video production company, from 1965 until 1977. The Robert A. Schneider collection of Cinecraft Productions audiovisual materials contains twenty films. The collection also contains production stills and images of Cinecraft personnel, workspaces, and equipment.   

Cinecraft oral histories include five interviews with former employees and relatives of Cinecraft employees. 

DU PONT

The Hanford Engineer Works in Hanford, Washington, was built to produce plutonium-239 and uranium-235 for the atomic weapons used in World War II. Sponsored by the Army Corps of Engineers, E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company was the prime contractor. The E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company's Hanford Engineer Works photographs and film collection includes "War construction in the desert," a film documenting the construction and operation of the works, as well as a film showing workers dancing in one of the mess halls and a farewell party of DuPont executives in 1948. 

William Henry Radebaugh (1909-1996) was a public relations executive at the DuPont Company for over twenty years. During his tenure and for several years after his retirement, he wrote, produced, and directed many films for the company. The bulk of the William Henry Radebaugh films and scripts collection contains his scripts, storyboards, proposals, and films. 

The film "Las Maravillas de la Quimica" is the Spanish-language version of "Wonder World of Chemistry," promoting the DuPont Company's chemical products. The film "Making Blasting Caps" documents the process of making blasting caps. DuPont Company's film and commercial collection includes commercials, short films, feature films, and television programs. 

US CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

This series, Film, 1948, 1958, 1962-1977, includes Chamber-produced films on specific business topics with titles such as “The Atom Comes to Town,” “The Story of Creative Capital,” “Once Upon a Time,” “The Magic Key,” and “People, Products, and Progress.” 

RCA

The Radio Corporation of America (RCA) was a leading manufacturer and vendor of radios, phonographs, televisions, and various consumer and military electronics products for over fifty years. It was incorporated in Delaware on October 17, 1919, and changed its name to RCA Corporation on May 9, 1969. This RCA Corporation collection primarily consists of moving images and sound recordings from 1953 to 2009, collected by the David Sarnoff Research Library. 

This 1958-1984 film series contains twenty-one films related to the military or space exploration, dating from 1958 to 1984. The military films involve projects with the Army, Navy, or Air Force, while the NASA films relate to Apollo 11, the Challenger, and the Solar Max repair. 

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MANUFACTURERS

Organized in 1895, NAM became one of the nation’s most influential business organizations. Expanding beyond its initial core membership in manufacturing to include firms in all sectors of the economy, NAM emerged as a powerful business lobby in Washington on virtually all areas of legislation in the 20th century. It particularly monitored efforts to regulate business and actively engaged the legislative process to produce outcomes that, in its opinion, reflected the interests of NAM members. In 1935, NAM added a motion picture program to the Public Relations Department. Initially the program produced films for theaters and special-interest groups. By the 1950s, the department produced, promoted, and distributed films for industry, schools, and community groups.  

The Motion Picture Department,1940-1959 records provide information about the motion pictures produced by NAM including correspondence, scripts, promotional materials, cast member resumes, and story outlines. The series also contains general information on topics like distribution, early NAM films, and motion picture bulletins listing the NAM films available for rental. 

L. Robert Oaks (1906-1981) worked for the National Association of Manufacturers, directing audiovisual programs. The L. Robert Oaks papers span his 18-year career with NAM, including NAM News, films, speeches, motion picture bulletins, pamphlets, scripts, and general information. 

CONTACT 

For general questions about using any of these materials, please use our Ask Hagley online form or call 302-658-2400. 

The Hagley Center for the History of Business, Technology and Society awards travel grants for visiting scholars. Some housing is available on the property. The Center also organizes conferences, research seminars, and academic programs. For more information, email clockman@Hagley.org.